Shadows Among Us
by wolfpurpledinosaur
Summary: With the Serpentine War over life seems (finally) at peace for...just about everyone. Anxiety and depression always strike the best of us. Rated T for subjects related to suicide. Sequel to The Wolf In Us.
1. Chapter 1

**Hello everybody, I am wolfpurpledinosaur, but you've may know that already. I'm back with the sequel to The Wolf In Us. So it's actually around the time for my birthday, and what's better way to celebrate than the upload of my story? So this story takes place about two years since the Serpentine War, with Brooke and Brianna in their second year of college. And you've been warned, there will be cliffhangers. I know, I know. Those darn cliffhangers make everyone want to strangle me. Oh well, ON WITH THE CHAPTER.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Ninjago or the character within the show. I only own my OC's.**

...

COLE I'M FREAKING DONE!" Brooke yelled.

They were currently playing GMOD Sandbox, Cole kept spawn killing her, which she didn't appreciate at all.

"I'm going to freaking kill you, Hensworth."

Cole laughed. "Ay, using the last name are we? Ms. Walker."

"You're lucky I find you a bit attractive or I would kill you right now." Brooke grumbled.

"Hey we're here too you know." Brianna said.

"Yeah." Lloyd agreed. "Stop with all the ooginess."

"Ooginess? Is that even a word?" Cole questioned.

"It is in his dictionary." Brooke said; hitting Lloyd's character, Sonic, with a baseball bat.

"Hey!" Lloyd grumbled.

"Hey! How's it going? Nice to meet yah." Brooke joked, Brianna and Cole laughed.

"So. What do you guys want to do now?" Cole asked.

"Let's play a horror map." Brooke suggested.

"How about no." Brianna said.

"Ah, come on Bre. It'll be fun." Lloyd said.

"Come on Brianna you don't want to disappoint your _boyfriend._ " Brooke smiled.

Brianna looked away from her computer at the blonde across the room. She picked up her water bottle and chunked it at Brooke's head. It passed her head. Brooke turned away from her laptop.

"Violence isn't gonna solve anything, Brianna." Brooke grinned.

"Says the one who hit Lloyd with a baseball bat." Cole laughed.

Brooke looked at Cole who sat on the couch of her apartment, Lloyd sat beside him. Both staring at their laptops. It's been two years since the Serpentine War. Brooke and Brianna had their own apartment whilst Cole and Lloyd still lived at Sensei Wu's Monastery.

Over the past two years everyone changed in appearance. Cole let his hair grow out a little, but he also had hair along his jaw line. Lloyd's natural blonde hair was turning a brown-blonde color. Brianna's didn't change much except for her hair. And Brooke, like Brianna, didn't change much expect for her height.

"Okay how about Prop Hunt?" Brooke questions.

Cole's phone vibrated in his pocket. He took it out and frowned at the text message "Can't. That was Jay. Sensei wants Lloyd and I back."

"Oh." Lloyd closed his laptop and stuffed it in his bag. Cole followed his actions.

"I guess we'll see y'all next week." Cole mumbled, engulfing Brooke in a hug.

"Yeah. Next week." Brooke mumbled into his shoulder.

"By the way." She whispered. "I like your Markiplier beard you have going on."

Cole rolled his eyes and laughed. "Thanks." He whispered back, pulling away from the hug. He walked toward the door, Lloyd followed after giving Brianna a hug.

"See y'all later." Brianna called out. Cole and Lloyd waved before closing the door behind them.

...

"It's about time you two lover boys showed up." Kai snickered as the two ninja walked through the front door.

"At least I have a girlfriend." Lloyd remarked.

Cole laughed. "So why did Sensei want us back?"

Zane walked into the room. "Maybe cause the last time you two stayed over there for a long time, you-." Kai put over Zane's mouth.

"We shall never speak of that again, Zane." Kai said. "Sensei wanted them back cause it's getting late and doesn't want them to be wondering about."

"I sense a bit of jealousy radiating off you Kai."

"What? Me jealous? Of what Zane?"

"Maybe cause you haven't experience the feeling of...love."

Kai groaned and walked out the room. "I don't need a girl to be happy, I was happy before and I'm happy now."

"Yah know, Kai." Jay walked past Kai. "If yah keep talking to yourself, you might go insane."

"You're the insane one Jay." Kai called over his shoulder.

"Right. Me the insane one?" Jay whispered.

Kai turned the corner and walking into his room, he slammed the door shut and locked it.

"Stupid love. Stupid girls." He mumbled. "I'm mean how hard is it for me to find a girl? If Lloyd, Cole, and Jay can do it. So can I!"

His thoughts wondered toward Zane. _Zane! Zane isn't in a relationship. I mean how can he_ _not be, he has fangirl out the wazoo. Sure I have fangirls too. However everyone loves a nindriod. I have to get him a date!_

"Maybe in the morning." Kai yawned and laid down on his bed. "I am going insane." He realized.

Kai groaned and pulled his blankets over his head.

...

Jay sat down on the couch next to his girlfriend, Nya. He held two sodas in his hands, handing the Sprite to Nya before opening his Pepsi.

"So what do you want to watch?" Nya asked. His slipped his arm around her waist. She smiled.

"We could just sit here and talk." He said with a smile.

"Nah I want Netflix." She turned on the TV and started watching Jurassic Park.

Jay chuckled and pulled Nya closer to him. A few minutes later Cole and Zane walked into the room.

"What are you two watching?" Zane asked.

"Jurassic Park, now shush!" Nya said, her eyes not leaving the screen.

"Jurassic Park? I don't understand." Zane said, sitting next to Nya. Cole sat beside Jay.

"It's a classic Zane." Cole said. "Just watch."

Jay groaned. He really wanted some _alone_ time with Nya, but he didn't wanted to complain. Nya was too tied up in the movie to care about _alone_ time anyways. Halfway through the movie Lloyd joined in watching the movie. He sat on the floor beside Zane's feet, slowly eating the popcorn he brought.

Everyone's eyes were glued to the screen expect Jay. He felt a weird feeling inside of him, like something was trying to escape. However the only way to do that is too claw it ways out.

 _God. Why now?_ Jay got up and ran out the room. He looked down at his hand as he ran. Brownish fur started to appear on his hand. His fingers turning into claws.

Jay ran outside, he heard footsteps behind him. He didn't need to turn to see who it is, he knew who it was.

"Jay?" Nya laid a hand on his shoulder. "Is everything okay?"

This was a normal thing. However Jay didn't know why. Every once in a while Jay would have that feeling. The feeling of something trying to claw it's way out of him. Usually he could shape shift into a wolf, but sometimes he would only shift halfway. Like a werewolf sorta thing.

"I'm fine." Jay gasped. He felt her arms around his waist as she hugged him from behind. He looked down to see his hands turning back to normal.

"I'm fine." He whispered.

He turned around and engulfed Nya into a hug. Jay looked up to see Cole and Lloyd standing in the doorway of the front door.

"I'm sorry." Jay whispered into Nya's shoulder.

"Jay." She mumbled. "You say that every time something like this happens, you can't control it. There's nothing to be sorry about."

"I've could of hurt someone...like last time." Jay glance at the scar on Nya's arm. She followed his gaze.

"Jay." She whispered. "I said I forgave you. Why do you keep beating yourself up about it?"

Lloyd and Cole decided to leave, they knew where conversation was heading. Nya would insist that he didn't hurt her and then they would end up making out. They didn't want to be around when the happened.

"Because, Nya, just the thought of me hurting you makes me feel all sick inside and makes me _want_ to hate myself." Nya looked down before leading him inside.

She pulled him toward the kitchen. A fresh pot of tea made by Zane laid on the stove. Jay sat at the table, whilst Nya poured Jay a glass. It always calmed him down. He drank the tea slowly, enjoy the sweet taste. Zane always puts a lot of sugar in his tea, which Jay absolutely loves. When the glass was empty he laid it on the table as he continued glaring at his hands that now laid on his lap. His gaze shifted to his peg leg. It reminded him of a pirate.

 _What next? Yah gonna give me an eyepatch universe?...Please don't._ Jay thought to himself.

"N-Nya." He stuttered. _Wow after three years she still makes me stutter._ "What is going to happen to us?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, I'm a monster. A half wolf...demon isn't gonna be expected easily. We can't hide me in these walls forever. I haven't seen my parents in forever. And if the people of N-Ninjago found out I'm a-a."

"Jay." Nya said.

"I'm a wolf! They would kill me for being a danger to society."

"Jay!" She yelled. He stopped talking. "You talk too much." She joked.

He managed a smile.

"Listen, Jay. I promise you none of that is going to happen. If you wanted to see your parents you could go see them later. Right now...I think you need some rest."

Jay glanced at the clock on the wall. The time read: 12:30. Sensei was having them train at daybreak.

"I guess you're right." He yawned.

She pulled him to his feet. "Come on sleepy head." He wrapped his arm around her shoulder, with her arm around his waist. They walked down the hallway toward their rooms.

...

They stopped in front of Nya's room. She engulfed him into a hug.

"I love you." Nya mumbled into his shoulder. This was not the first time these words were spoken, it was after the Serpentine war that Jay said that he loved her. Then she shared the words too.

"I love you more." Jay mumbled back, smiling.

She rolled her eyes playfully. "Whatever."

"Goodnight, Nya."

"Goodnight." She kissed his cheek.

"For heaven sake get a room already." Cole said walking past them, heading toward his room.

"I would but-"

"I don't think you want to finish that sentence." Cole said, motioning toward Nya.

She had her eyebrow raised and her arms crossed as she stared at Jay.

"But what Jay?" She asked.

"Haha. Nothing. I wasn't going to say anything."

Nya looked over at Cole. "This is what I have to deal with for the rest of my life."

Cole laughed. "Good luck."

Jay shot Cole a glare.

"See you boys in the morning." Nya said, giving Jay a kiss before closing her door.

Jay walked across the hall toward his room. He opened it to find his cluttered desk, a bed, and a dresser with his clothes. He changed into a baggy shirt and sweatpants. Jay wore his black one's cause Nya stole his blue sweatpants. She said that they were comfortable and soft, and that she was going to wear them. He didn't protest, she looked good in his baggy clothes.

He laid down in his bed, ready for sleep to over take him. However, like Cole, nightmares floated around him.

...

 _The streets of Ninjago City were empty. Jay walked down the streets, looking for any signs of life. He found none._

 _"Where is everyone?" He questioned._

 _A laugh echoed throughout the city. It reminded Jay of all the bad guys he fought, they all had an evil laugh._

 _The feeling that he was being watched, crept up his spine and to his neck. He turned around but saw no one. Jay kept walking._

 _"Hello? Nya? Cole? Kai?" Jay called out. "Zane? Lloyd?"_

 _"Anybody?" He said. His voice bouncing off the walls of the buildings, creating an echoed which made Jay shiver._

 _Jay continued walking, he didn't know where he was going but he didn't care. He knew someone was following him and didn't want to turn around. He could feel the presence of the follower. Jay heard footsteps from behind. They seemed light and frail footstep, then turned into a louder and louder steps. Jay sprinted forward._

 _Jay being his clumsy self, tripped over his own feet- well foot. He landed in a puddle. Which cause him to see his reflection. The look of horror crossed his face. He looked into the eyes of the beast he called himself. He was full on werewolf. His fangs bared sharp, which were coated in dry blood. His fur was no longer brown, it was a white-grey. The thing that scared him the most was his eyes. The no longer supported his kind and soft blue eyes, but they had a dark crimson shade to them, almost demon like._

 _The thing that was following him now stood above him. It was Nya. Jay realized that she was trying to stop him from seeing himself. Boy he was wrong. In the reflection he could see Nya pull out a gun from her cloak._

 _"I'm sorry." She whispered before pulling the trigger._

 _..._

Jay let out a blood curtailing scream. He fell off his bed pulling the sheets with him. Jay laid on the ground in a fetal position, breathing heavily. The door creaked open, he pulled the covers over his head. He felt someone pull the covers off his face. Slowly he opened his eyes to see the consider look of his girlfriend.

"Jay? Are you okay? I heard you scream." She whispered in a soothing tone.

Jay sat up and she engulfed in a hug. He heard footsteps from down the hall, Zane appeared in his doorway.

"Brother, are you alright?" Zane questioned. "What is the matter?"

"Nothing." He whispered. "Just a nightmare."

"You wanna talk about it?" Nya asked.

He looked down at the memory of it. "Not really."

Nya smiled. "Okay."

Zane closed the door and left, knowing that Jay needed to be alone with Nya.

They both laid down on his bed, she wrapped her arms around his waist and laid her head on his chest. She smiled as she felt his heartbeat increase. It made her fell all giddy inside that she had this kind of effect on him. She fell into a sleep.

Jay stroked her arm gently, not wanting to wake her. The feeling of safeness surrounded him as he drifted off to sleep.

...

Nightmares, nightmares, and more nightmares. It was a thing that happened to Cole for the past two years. He didn't know why it was happened, all he knew that it was happening. Tonight wasn't an exception.

...

" _Why do you always come back Cole?" A voice echoed._

 _"I'm going to ask you again. Who are you?" Cole yelled._

 _The voice laughed. "You would want to know wouldn't you?"_

 _Cole ran toward the voice. "WHERE ARE YOU?!"_

 _"I'm everywhere Cole. You can't escape."_

 _"Why are you doing this?" Cole asked._

 _"Oh you know cause it's fun. It's fun to see you scream in pain. It's fun to see you coward at your fears. It's fun to see you suffer."_

 _"Why me? Of all people in Ninjago. Why me?"_

 _A figure appeared in front of Cole, the figure was chained up. Cole noticed the blonde hair with blue streaks. Brooke._

 _"The bigger they are...the harder they fall." A laugh echoed, before fading._

 _..._

Cole shot up in bed. He groaned before grabbing his note pad on his dresser.

"That's the third one this week." He mumbled throwing the note pad on the table.

Tears threatened to fall as he pondered the words of the man in his dreams.

"Why me?" Cole whispered.

Without a second thought, Cole grabbed the cell phone on his dresser and dialed an all too familiar number.

"Hello?" A raspy voice came through the other end.

"Hey Brooke."

"Cole it's two in the morning. What do you need?"

"I just needed someone to talk to."

"What's wrong?"

Cole went silent. "Nothing. I just couldn't sleep."

The other end went silent also.

"You need to stop lying to me, Cole." Brooke sighed.

"You can see straight through me can't you?" Cole questioned.

"More than you know."

Cole sighed. "Promise you won't laugh."

"Cole…I would only laugh if it was absolutely hilarious." Brooke joked.

Cole laughed.

"Okay so what do you want to tell me?" Brooke asked.

Cole went silent again. "Well…"

...

 **Heyyyyy guys and gals. As it turns out, I'm actually good at making dark nightmares. Not something to be proud of really but I'll take it. So what does everyone thing of the first chapter. I fell like this chapter pushed too much for the first chapter but it's already written so. But so far it may not seem like it, but this story will a major Brianna/Lloyd fanfiction, due to the lack of it in the last story. It's time we give the Green Ninja some loving. So some news, I have purchased some equipment required for my YouTube channel, it won't be delivered for some time but my gaming YouTube channel is now official. If you want to, go subscribe to Wolf Purple Dinosaur. A link will be on my Instagram jack_skellington_lover. The basics of my channel is horror games and funny stuff. However any suggestions for games of any kind is accepted. Well see y'all in the next chapter. WAIT- make sure that you wish my friend, Fandoms of the Opera, a very belated happy birthday. And my birthday was actually July 24. But wish FOTO a happy birthday first. Okay, BYE BYE.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey guys WPD here with a new chapter. Well why else would you be here? Maybe to take my soul... Well then let's continue on with the story. Shall we? So this chapter maybe uploaded on my mom's birthday, which is a month after mine. If not then...oh well. So ON WITH THE CHAPTER!**

...

Nya awoke in a place she didn't recognize, the walls were painted a light blue. And the sheets that she wrapped in were white instead of her red one's. She felt someone put their arms around her waist; Nya jerked up. Making her sleeping boyfriend awake.

"What what?" Jay shot up, his hair messy and displaced.

"Sorry...you just frightened me a little."

Jay grinned. "I scared The Great Samurai?"

Nya playfully shoved his shoulder. "Whatever." She smiled, laying back on the pillows.

For the next few minutes, all they did was sit there. Wrapping their selves in each other's presence. Neither one of them wanted to leave each other's side; the feeling of security floated around them. They had been dating for three years now and they loved each other with all their hearts. However for the past few months Jay has started to drift away from her. From the fear of hurting her _again._

The memories rushed back to Jay.

...

 _Everyone sat around the dinner table. Brooke and Brianna were off for the summer so they came to join them. After saying grace they all started to eat._

 _It's been two months since these weird transformations started happening. However Jay never took into consideration how dangerous he really is._

 _The feeling returned to Jay._

 _"Oh gosh. Why now?" Jay mumbled. He ran out of the dinner room._

 _He heard the voices of his friends calling out to him, however; he ignored them. Jay ran out the back door. The footsteps of his friends pounded behind him. Jay's breaths turned irregular, to short gasps. He looked down at his hand as brown-orange fur appeared, popped up and down his arms and legs. His fingers turned into sharp claws, used to murder his victims._

 _"Jay?" The voice of his girlfriend reached his ears._

 _He didn't feel himself. Unlike the other time this happen, he felt anger boiling within him. Anger he never felt toward anyone, not even when Garmadon turned Nya into one of his dark minions._

 _"Jay? Please answer me. Are you okay?"_

 _He felt someone place their hand on his shoulder, the anger within him boiled._

 _"Don't touch...ME!"_

 _Jay turned around and slashed at the person behind him. A blood curtailing scream echoed, Jay stared into the eyes of his terrified girlfriend._

 _"Nya!"_

 _Kai ran forward and pulled his sister behind him. Nya was clenching her right arm, blood poured from the wound._

 _"Look at what you did. You, you MONSTER." Kai screamed at Jay._

 _Jay stared at his injured girlfriend. Tears streamed down her face. Realization hit him. He had caused this. He had caused her pain._

 _Without a second thought, Jay turned and ran into the woods. The voices behind him called out but he couldn't hear over the pounding of his heart._

 _"No. No. No." Jay mumbled to himself. "Why? Why? Why?"_

 _Jay came to a stop. He ran so far out that he reached a cliff, a hundred foot drop to someone's death. At the bottom was a stream, about seven foot deep. Jay stood at the edge, ready to jump._

 _"JAY! STOP!" He heard from behind him._

 _"You can't try and stop me Cole. This is where monsters like me belong...dead."_

 _"Think about your family, Jay." Cole pleaded._

 _"My family? MY FAMILY?" Jay screamed._

 _"My parents are hundred miles away from here, my sister probably hates me. And Nya...I don't deserve her. She's given me all of her love and what do I do? I attack her. I don't deserve to live."_

 _"Jay. There's nothing you could do to make us hate you. If anything else." Cole walked up to him. "You have me. Your brother."_

 _Jay started down at the rushing water below. It seemed to be calling him forward. Like it wants him to jump._

 _Jay claw's turned back to hands, the brown-orange fur disappeared from his arms and legs. Jay leaned back from exhaustion, Cole quickly caught him._

 _"It's okay brother. I got you."_

 _Cole picked Jay up over his shoulder, heading back to the monastery. When he arrived, Jay was asleep. He laid him on the couch, pulling a blanket over him._

 _"Is he alright?" A voice came from the doorway. Cole turned to see Nya._

 _"He should be fine." He didn't want to tell Nya what really happened._

 _Jay wasn't sleeping. He heard their conversation._

 _"Well I'm glad he didn't try and kill himself or get in a fight with a bear or something."_

 _Cole laughed. "Yeah we wouldn't want that."_

 _Cole glanced at her arm. "Did Zane fix you up?"_

 _"Yeah. He's the medic of the group anyways."_

 _After a few seconds of awkward silence, Nya left for bed. Cole glanced at the 'sleeping' blue_ _ninja._

 _"I don't know what to do with you Jay." Cole mumbled before turning off the light and leaving._

 _Tears streamed down the blue ninjas face._

 _"Why can't I have a normal life?"_

...

Nya could read Jay like a book. She knew what he was thinking of. With a sigh she grabbed his hand. Slowly he looked up at her. A single tear slid down his face, he looked away, trying to hide his emotions. Nya put her hand under his chin, guiding him to look at her.

"Please don't try and hide your emotions." Nya whispered. "You're not good at it."

Jay laughed slightly.

"I'm sorry." He gave her a puppy-dog face.

She kissed his nose. "I forgive you."

They laid back down, enjoying all the sleep they can get.

…

This was a new feeling for the Green Ninja. When he awoke, he awoke in cold sweat. The nightmares from the night before still shook his memory. Lloyd rubbed some sweat from his forehead, and ran a hand through his hair.

"This is strange…I usually don't have nightmares. Well not like _that_ kind anyways."

 _Lloyd trudged down the dark hallway. The only source of light was a torch or two that sat along the walls. When he reached the end of the hallway, he was met with a large metal door. Using whatever strength he could fathom he pushed the door open. And surprise, surprise; he found a dark room. Grabbing one of torches that hung on the wall, he walked into the dark room._

 _Lloyd lit the fire place with his torch, the room seems to open up more. He observed his surroundings. An old bed was placed in the corner of the room. A dresser stood beside it, most of it drawers were open and clothes were scattered across the room. On the opposite end of the room was a desk. Papers were strayed across it, most of them were just crumpled paper and some had drawings on them. Lloyd observed them with interest. However another thing caught his eye. At the corner of the desk was a helmet, he knew the sight of it all too well._

 _Without a second thought Lloyd darted towards the door. The sounds of footsteps echoed down the hallway._

" _Crap, crap, crap, crap." Lloyd ran back and hid in the closet, leaving it a crack open so he can see out._

 _A dark figure with four arms busted through the door, Lloyd held his breath as the figure walked past the closet he was hiding in._

" _Stupid ninja, stupid Ninjago, stupid universe. " The man mumbled. "Why won't they just give up already?"_

 _Lloyd moved slightly, big mistake. The objects that crowded inside the closet was pushed from their place of rest. The closet door opened as the secrets within poured out, leaving Lloyd standing like a deer in the headlights._

 _The dark figure turned to face the intruder._

" _Lloyd?"_

 _The green ninja stared into the eyes of his corrupted father; however, he didn't remember them being so gloomy and full of nothingness._

" _W-what are you doing here boy?" Garmadon backed away slowly, as if he feared his own son._

" _That's something I would like to know too."_

" _No you can't be here… he'll find you Lloyd. You must go NOW!" Garmadon yelled._

" _Wait, father, who?"_

" _It's too much to explain and not enough time you have to leave-"_

 _The fire in the fireplace went out suddenly, leaving nothing but the light from the hallway to fill the room with light._

" _It's too late for me son… run while you still can!"_

" _Run from what?" Lloyd inched his way toward his father, but with every step he took, his father took another one back._

" _RUN NOW BOY!"_

 _Lloyd turned and ran out the door, using the torches as his guide._

" _That's right little boy, run on home to your mommy." A voice whispered in his ear. "Run until you're safe…so you better be good at track…"_

…

"Yah know even for an even guy in my dreams, he's not good with words." Lloyd mumbled, getting out of his bed.

Someone started banging loudly on his door.

"Come in." Lloyd grumbled, he defiantly wasn't a morning person.

The door opened to reveal a distressed looking fire ninja.

"Have you seen Nya? I went to go tell her that breakfast is ready but she's not there."

"Have you checked Jay's room?"

"Why would she be in-"Kai pondered for a second. His visage turned into a scold. "JAY!" He turned and ran down the hallway _._

Lloyd rolled his eyes. "When is he gonna learn?"

Walking over to his closet, Lloyd grabbed his ninja attire and quickly got dressed. The aroma of bacon hit his nose.

"Smells like Zane's cooking." Lloyd said in awe. In a hurry Lloyd ran out into the hallway.

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN IT"S NOT WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE?" Kai's voice echoed down the hallway.

 _He was probably giving them a lecture or beating the crap out of Jay,_ Lloyd thought.

The sounds of heavy footsteps came from behind. "I said it's not what it looks like Kai." Jay quickly sprinted pass Lloyd, Kai quickly followed.

"Then why you running?!" Kai yelled.

"Cause I know you're gonna KILL ME!" Jay's voice echoed down the hall.

 _I take that my second guess was correct._

…

Cole didn't get any sleep that night, he spent all night talking to his girlfriend. He questioned her logic of staying up all night with him, since she's in college, but she claimed that her first class didn't start until noon.

Cole yawned slightly, this didn't go unnoticed.

"Maybe you should go to sleep Cole." Brooke said.

"Nah, I'm fine."

"Cole I know you too well to know that you're lying. You need some sleep." She demanded.

"But…I can't."

Brooke stayed silent for five seconds before answering.

"Why?" She mumbled.

It was Cole's turn to stay silent.

"I don't know." He mumbled back.

The other end of the line went silent, so silent that you could hear the cars outside her window as they rushed to work or school. Also the birds that chirped outside his window could be heard, breaking the thick silence.

"Why don't we start from the beginning, when did these nightmares first start?" She finally asked.

"I don't know…about a year and half ago."

"WHAT?!" She yelled. "It's been a year and a half and you decide to tell me now?"

"Well…"

"Is that your word of the week, Cole? 'Well'?" She yelled. Cole has seen, and heard, Brooke rage but not like this .

"Are you mad?" He asked quietly, afraid to stir her again.

"Am I mad? What kind of question is that? Am I mad? No Cole, I'm not mad, I just found out that my boyfriend keeps a secret from me for more than a year and decides to tell me know. No I'm totally not mad." She replied, sarcastically.

"What can I do to make it up to you?" Cole asked.

"Tell me the God's honest truth."

"I did tell you."

"Well how I am supposed to know that you aren't keep more secrets from me?"

"You're not supposed to know, you just have to trust me.

"It's hard once you find out your boyfriends secret, I mean we tell each other everything."

"I promise that I have no more secrets."

"Pinky swear?"

Cole smiled she really did have the heart of a five year old. "Pinky swear."

Brooke laughed. "Now get some sleep rock head."

"Okay, love you. "

"Um…love you too." She hung up. It wasn't the first time she did that, he knew that she feared the dreaded 'L' word. So he tried not to force it, but sometimes he lets it slip.

"Yeah, like I'm going to get any sleep." Cole said, laying back against his pillows.

 **So I have no idea what I was doing with the whole Cole and Brooke thing at the end there. I need some more information to put in this chapter so it would be over 2,000 words. However it turned into to some random argument. I was writing it thinking "What am I doing with my life right now?" So sorry for the delay, yah know, down here in good all North East Florida the rain is unpredictable and stops the power almost twice a week, so bare with me as we go down this road I like to call Shadows Among Us. WPD is signing off for not the last time, bye-bye.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: WPD in no way owns Ninjago: Masters of Spinjitzu.**

 **Hello all you beautiful people, I am wolfpurpledinosaur, but you probably knew that already. Anyways thanks for y'all's reviews. It means a lot to me to see people actually enjoying my stories. A little shocking that people haven't been complaining about me using "y'all" since it's a southern lingo kind of word. However I'm not the one to complain. Anyways guys a little update about my channel "Wolf Purple Dinosaur". A very good friend of mine suggested that I play this horror game called Erie, I have seen no walkthroughs on it so I'm going in fresh. So I would hope to have that up soon but school has been hitting me hard these past few weeks. Anyway enough about my boring life, ON WITH THE STORY!**

Zane placed a plate of eggs and bacon on the breakfast table. He watched in amusement as Lloyd scooped himself a huge serving of eggs and grabbed three pieces of bacon.

"I guess I should make another batch then." Zane said.

"Yeah. I didn't eat last night and I'm a very hungry man." Lloyd said, biting a chunk out of his bacon.

"I don't see any men." Kai laughed, walking in the room. "I spy with my little eye a nindriod and a little blonde boy."

Kai ruffled Lloyd's hair, and he swatted his hand away.

"I'll make your little eye turn black and blue in a second." Lloyd threatened with a smile.

"I would like to see you try."

"You know you're talking to the green ninja. I could beat you with one hand tied behind my back."

"You'll have to catch me first."

Kai and Lloyd stood nose to nose in a deep stare down.

"Well if you two keep arguing like that, we'll have to call the fangirl to confirm that their ship is together." Jay laughed, sitting down at the table.

Kai and Lloyd broke their stare off and looked at the blue ninja and samurai as they sat down.

"Watch it motor mouth, you're already on my bad side today." Kai grumbled.

"When am I not on your bad side Kai?" Jay asked.

Kai managed a smile. "When you're not cuddling with my sister." Nya rolled her eyes.

 _If only they knew the truth why Nya was with me…Why am I so weak?_ Jay looked down. Nya saw his look and grabbed his hand. Kai watched from the other end of the table.

"Was it something I said?" He questioned.

"No Kai it's just…I don't want to talk about it right now." Jay mumbled the last part, just above a whisper, Kai was surprised that he actually heard Jay.

"I have another batch of egg and bacon, hot and ready." Zane said placing the tray on the table as he busted through the door. "Where's Cole?"

"I'll get him" Jay volunteered, taking the chance to leave the awkwardness that floated around the table.

Slowly Jay got up and headed down the hall. He took every step slowly, not wanting to get there then going back to the awkwardness.

 _Can't I just run away? Run, run, and run and maybe fall off a cliff at the end of the run?_

"No you can't" Nya said walking up behind him.

Jay gulped. "Did I say that out loud?" He met the glare of his girlfriend.

"Indeed you did." Nya said.

"Nya…I love you…and the last thing I want to do is to hurt you or the others. I've been thinking, maybe it's best that I run away and never return…Everyone would be safer with me not around."

"Jay…I didn't come here to have a preaching sermon with you."

"Then why are you here?" She held out a medicine container and a bottle of water.

"I came to make sure you took your medicine before you ate." She said.

"Oh…" Jay said. He opened the bottle and popped one of the pills in his mouth and took a gulp of water. "Thanks beautiful."

The door behind them creaked open, revealing a sleep deprived Cole.

"Jesus, Cole you look terrible." Nya said, pressing her hand to his forehead. "And it feels like you have a fever. There's no way that you're leaving this room, in bed now." She pushed him back into his room.

"But…I need to train…Sensei." Cole said, falling back onto his bed. Jay and Nya stood over him.

"Sensei will understand if you need a sick day, Cole. You look terrible!" Jay said.

"Thanks for the motivational speech, Jay." Cole replied sarcastically.

"My pleasure." Jay said back in the same sarcastic tone.

Nya walked into Cole's adjoining bathroom and ran cold water onto a rag. She folded it up. When she return she placed it over Cole's forehead.

"Maybe I should call Brooke to watch you. I have errands to run today with Misako." Nya said pulling her phone out of her back pocket.

Cole's eyes opened quickly. "NO! You can't call Brooke."

"Why?" Nya questioned.

"Cause she will kill me if she found out. She keeps telling me that I need to sleep and that the nightmares will-."

"Nightmares? Cole what nightmares?" Jay asked.

"It's been going since the end of the Serpentine War."

"Do you want to talk about it?" Nya questioned, laying a hand on his shoulder.

Cole shook his head. "Not really."

"You sure?" Jay asked.

"I'm sure."

Nya and Jay left his room and walked back to the dining room. Jay stopped before he entered the room. Nya turned and gave him a confused look.

"I'm going outside and get some fresh air." Jay said. Nya gave him a small nod and continued her way to the dining room.

* * *

Jay grabbed his grey hoodie out his room and ran out the door before anyone would ask where he was. He slipped the grey hoodie over his head and walked out the walls of the monastery. The breeze that came from the forest calmed him. With a sigh he walked past the underbrush that covered the edge of the forest, into the dark woods.

As he walked he felt the stress seem to lift from his shoulders as the leaves beneath his feet crunched, as if all the anger was being taken out on the dead leaves. Jay gently kicked a rock and watched it as it bounced off a tree, back onto the trail he was walking on. With another kick it disappeared into the forest. Jay brushed his hair out of his eyes, it was getting really long now.

Jay followed the trail for what seemed like hours. He didn't bother to check his phone or watch for the time because it didn't matter the time of day, as long as he got home before the sunsets Sensei wouldn't chew him out or make him do long training tomorrow.

At the sound behind him, Jay snapped around to face it, but found nothing. He quirked an eyebrow, similar to his sisters, and he continued on the path. It wasn't long before another sound from behind came back. Jay growled in anger when nothing was there again.

"Stupid birds." He mumbled.

When he turn to walk he found himself staring into pools of green.

"Where's Jay and Cole?" Zane questioned as the samurai sat down at the table.

"Cole is sick and Jay went for a walk." Nya said plainly, picking up her fork and taking a bite of her eggs.

"Sick? He seemed fine yesterday." Kai said through the eggs that clogged up his mouth.

"Well this morning he wasn't. He had a fever, bags under his eyes, and his eyes were bloodshot."

"Maybe it just one of those days." Lloyd said.

"Let's hope so." Nya said.

* * *

"Oh… it's just a little deer." Jay said, staring at the fawn that blocked his path. "Where's your momma, kiddo?"

It wasn't until the fawn started to walk around that Jay noticed the bite marks on his legs.

"Ah man, what happened to you little guy?" Jay stepped closer to it. "Walked into the wrong neighborhood?" Jay gently laid a hand on the fawns back holding it still to observe the wounds.

"I should get you back to the monastery. Zane would know what to do."

Jay carefully placed his hands under the fawn's belly, lifting him up on his shoulder. The fawn squirmed at bit.

"It's okay, it okay…I shall call you…Boomerang! Boomer for short." If animals could talk he's pretty sure that Boomer would call him an idiot. "Yeah I know I'm weird, but that shall be your name!" Jay proclaimed.

For the first time in a long time, Jay felt the need to help someone that wasn't being chased by a pirate, skeleton, or serpent.

* * *

When the monastery came into view, Jay picked up his pace. With a swift kick the gates swung opened. The creaking noise attracted the people inside to go outside, investigating the noise.

"Halt stranger." Kai yelled popping out of the door, fists aimed at Jay. "Oh it's just you, Jay."

"Yeah. Just Jay." Jay repeated, pushing past Kai.

Kai held his hands up in surrender as Jay walked passed him. "I was just speaking." He mumbled.

"Some words are best unspoken." Jay laughed. His visage turned from joking to serious in a half a second, remembering the task at hand.

"Zane!" The blue ninja called out. "I need you!"

Kai just noticed the baby deer. "Is that a fawn?" He questioned, patting its head.

"Yeah I found him out in the woods injured."

"What's this?" Zane asked, staring at the fawn.

"We need your help Zane."

* * *

 **Yeah I know short chapter, and kinda of an cliffy ending. You all can beat me with a stick later. I'm sure you all would enjoy that too. So again, very sorry for the delay. I've just been off my game the last few months, not feeling the need to write. Got a little inspiration, thanks to my glorious friend: Fandoms of the Opera. Go check her out if you enjoy Five Nights at Freddy's, I know I do. Until next fanfiction, WPD is signing out for not the last time. PEACE!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Hello everybody my name is WPD, but you probably knew that already. Welcome back to the Shadows among Us. I know, my update schedule is out of whack, I blame depression and procrastination, but do not worry everything is fine and dandy on the Dinosaur Ranch. Now in this chapter stuff gets real, and by real I mean this chapter is going to be sort of a little emotional, but other than that a little bit boring. However, I care about you guys and girls so I'll try to make it interesting. Anyways let's try not to beat me with a stick today, even though last chapter was so boring that I spent to the whole day sitting in my room thinking about how horrible it was and how horrible I am at writing. Just kidding. I like to downgrade myself sometimes. All and all, I'm deeply sorry to everyone who is reading this story. My lack of updates is mainly caused by me being depressed and unmotivated to do things, but I always have my friends, including Fandoms of the Opera who would pull an all-nighter so I can finish this chapter for you guys. Anyways enough of my bantering. ON WITH THE CHAPTER!**

* * *

 _"Our anxiety does not empty tomorrow of its sorrows, but only empties today of its strengths."_

 _― Charles Haddon Spurgeon_

* * *

Zane grabbed the fawn from Jay's arms, carrying it to the living room. Jay staggered behind him, watching to make sure that the little animal was okay. Carefully, Zane placed the fawn on the carpeted floor. The fawn looked around terrified by its new surroundings.

To be completely honest, Zane didn't know what to do. He couldn't stop the circle of life; however, the distressed look on Jay's face made him try to do something. Quickly Zane ran into the bathroom and grabbed a towel. He placed it gently against the fawns wound. The innocent animal squirmed, trying to escape his grasp. Lightly Jay patted the fawns head, in hopes of calming him, but sadly not even he could keep the little creature to try to escape. In hopes of trying to help the animal, Zane held him down, and inspected its wounds. However, he knew there was no hope for the innocent creature. Zane knew that he wouldn't survive the night.

Zane did his best to stop some of the bleeding, but it continued to pour from the animals' wounds. The fawn squirmed and squirmed, and Zane didn't blame him. If you were pulled from your comfort zone, you would be scared too, injured or not. Zane looked over at Jay, he was staring at his hands that were covered in dried blood, Zane figured it was from carrying the fawn. He pretended he didn't the blood caked under Jay's nails.

"It's okay, Boomer. Everything's going to be okay." Jay cooed, patting Boomers head.

"Boomer?" A voice snickered from the doorway. Kai walked into the living room. "Oh look more wild animals in our house. It's already enough having you around Motor Mouth."

Kai was only joking, but Jay took it as an insult. Jay looked back down at his hands, like he was ashamed of them and what they could do. Zane shot the red ninja a look, telling him to cut it out. Jay fiddled with his hands. The red ninja didn't catch Zane's warning glance.

"There's like somedays that you're chill, but then other days you're like yeesh. Kind of like the Hulk or something."

Jay was shaking now. His knees were pulled close to his chest, and his arms wrapped firmly around his knees, with his head down.

"Kai…" Zane warned, holding Boomer close as he squirmed.

Kai didn't catch his second warning, nor noticing Jay's breakdown. He was sitting back on the couch and kept his head held high, looking at the ceiling as he talked.

"Sometimes you really freak me out, like no joke. We can be sitting all normally then you turn all hulk mode…"

"KAI!" Zane yelled.

Kai looked over at the nindriod. Zane was never the one to yell, but Kai really pissed him off. As the red ninja eyes wondered he noticed Jay shaking and sitting in the fetal position. From across the room he could see sweat pouring down his face that was white as a sheet.

Forgetting about the fawn, he tossed Boomer onto the couch. Zane grabbed Jay and held onto him.

"He's having an anxiety attack." Zane said, holding Jay firmly in place.

Kai stood to his full height, realizing his words were having a bigger effect than he meant them to. He walked slowly over to Zane and Jay. With every step his nerves shook and his tears couldn't be held back.

"Jay…" Kai said, slowly. "I'm sorry."

"Go get Nya." Zane said, his voice dark and demanding.

"Zane?" Kai questioned. "Is he going to be okay?"

"Go. Get. Nya. Now!" Zane yelled. The fawn laid silently on the couch, the now blood stained towel wrapped around him.

Kai turned and ran out the door. Tears threatened to fall down his face; however, he wiped them away. He followed down the hallway towards his sisters' quarters. When he reached her door he repeatedly knocked on it.

"NYA! NYA! NYA! OPEN THE DOOR NOW!" Kai shouted, banging on the door. "Please?"

Nya opened the door. She looked pissed. Her fists were curled up, ready to punch, and her visage showed anger… a lot of anger. "You better have a good reason for banging on my door, Kai." Nya said, getting ready to swing at his head.

"Just come on." Kai grabbed her wrist and pulled her down the hallway.

"Kai?! What's going on?!" Nya questioned, demandingly.

Kai continued to drag his little sister down the hallway. Finally, she gave up and followed him without questions. They reached the living room, her eyes immediately focused on Zane and Jay who sat on the ground. Zane had his arm wrapped around his shoulders in the sense of comfort.

"What's going on?" Nya ran over to them, kneeling beside Zane.

"Jay had an anxiety attack. I thought you could help me calm him down." Zane said, holding on to Jay like his life depended on it. Jay stared at the wall in front of him, his face pale.

Nya held onto Jay's arm in an attempt to calm; however, she knew that physical contact would not calm him, rather it would make his anxiety worse. Zane's intelligence seemed to disappear at that time, because he held onto Jay like he would vanish if Zane let him go.

"Zane, we need to move him to the couch." Nya said.

The white nindriod released his bear like grip from Jay, and moved him to the red lumpy couch. Kai watched from a far. Jay had his hands clamped into fists, and sweat trickled down his face. The color had completely disappeared from his face, making him almost ghost like. Nya sat down on the couch, keeping a small distance so Jay wouldn't feel cornered.

"What can we do?" Kai asked.

"Just to wait and let Jay cool down…what happened to make him have an emotional breakdown like this?" Nya asked, still staring at her boyfriend.

Zane looked over at Kai, he was twiddling her hands, knowing the beating that he would receive from his little sister.

"He could have been having some bad memories." Zane suggested, glancing at Kai slightly, Nya didn't seem to notice.

"Yeah that could be it." Nya mumbled.

The little fawn moved closer to Jay. The bleeding seemed to stop but he was still weak. He gently laid his head in Jay's lap, and closed his eyes. Jay patted Boomers head, and smiled.

"Jay?" Nya questioned, cautiously.

Jay looked over at his girlfriend, taking in her features, which made him feel warm inside. Something he hasn't felt in a while. The look of concern on her visage made Jay feel uncomfortable and a little embarrassed. _Of course of all the blessed days, I had to choose today to have a breakdown._

Nya held her head high, knowing that any weakness that she showed would be caught by him, and the last thing she wanted was for him to think that something was wrong. The best thing she could do was show that she was there for a sense of comfort. She couldn't bypass the look of fear that showed in his eyes, and the goosebumps that appeared along his evenly tan arms. How badly she wanted to reach for him, and pull him to her, telling him that everything will be okay, even when they are not.

"Do you want to talk about what's going on?" She knew that asking so would be risky but she took a leap of faith.

He stayed silent before answering. "Yes."

* * *

 _Jay once again found himself outside, relishing in the cool autumn breeze that swept across the land. The gentle wind grazed across his skin, goosebumps appeared along his arms from the lack of a jacket. Today was the day that him and Nya had decided to take off and enjoy each other's company, rather than being cooped up inside, surrounded by guys who would rather not see their "romantic gestures" as Kai would call it. Of course he still didn't want to admit that his baby sister was in a relationship before him._

 _"Ready to go?" A gentle voice called from behind Jay._

 _Jay turned and saw his ever so perfect girlfriend. It wasn't a special occasion, so they wore casual clothes rather than getting dressed up. He wouldn't care what she was wearing, she looked amazing either way to him. Nya tossed his dark blue jacket at him._

 _"Thought you might need that." She smirked._

 _"Thanks." He said, nervously, and slipped the jacket on._

 _Nya walked over to him, and linked her arm with his. She threw him a flirtatious smile and planted a gentle kiss against his cheek. The heat rose to his face, making his face as red as a rose. The result of his blushing made her giggle slightly, in which made him blush even more._

 _"Shall we continue?" Jay asked, trying to hide his blush._

 _"We shall, mon amour." Nya blushed at her own response._

 _It was Jay's turn to laugh. He wasn't fluent in French, but he knew what she had said. The blush slowly creeping back up his neck and to his face. Without another word they walked aimlessly out the monasteries courtyard and into the woods, following the beaten path. Jay felt Nya's hand travel down his arm and intertwined their hands. Their locked arms slightly swaying._

 _They had reached a small creek when they decided to take a break from their stroll. Nya said it would be better to take breaks because of his "peg leg". Not wanting to defy her; Jay sat down in the dry leaves that have fallen from the trees that lingered above them, Nya sat beside him. During the five minutes of silence, Jay snuck a glance at Nya from time to time. Sometimes she would catch him in the act and they both would laugh. After a couple of minutes had passed, Jay grabbed her hand and pulled her close to him. From there he placed a kiss against her forehead and laid his head against her own. The sounds of the flow of water from the creek lured him into a sleep. Nya already had fallen against his shoulder into a deep sleep. He followed her actions._

 _When he had awoken Nya wasn't there, but he knew she was close. He could sense her. Jay stood to his feet. The feeling of dread came upon when he saw his distressed girlfriend ten few away, looking at him with horror._

 _"Jay." She said in the best calm voice she could fathom._

 _Jay back away slowly when he looked down at his hand. Orange-brown fur covered his whole hand, claws replacing his fingers. He turned to look down at creek, but he knew what he was going to see and he didn't like it. Somehow he transformation have found an in between area, because he felt like he was in a cliché movie. With the werewolf and the frightened girl; however, she wasn't as frightened as in the movies, because Nya came up behind him and laid a hand cautiously against his back. Before Jay could process what he was doing, he turned and slashed at Nya. Blood poured from the wound in her arm, she refused to cry. Releasing what he had done, Jay sprinted into the underbrush of the forest._

 _"Jay!" She called out, he didn't respond or give a second glance._

* * *

Brianna slowly opened her eyes to the sound of the devil on her table. She slammed her hand on the snooze button of her alarm clock and rolled back into bed. The smell of burnt popcorn from the previous night masked the aroma of pizza rolls that Brooke was making. Classes didn't start until noon, so she decided to get all the sleep she can get.

The door creaked open, allowing a stream of light to enter the corridors of the dark room.

"Brianna, come on, your class is in an hour." Brooke grumbled, leaning against the doorframe. Even from her silhouette figure, Brianna could see the dark circles under her eyes.

"I don't want to." Brianna grumbled, burying her head under the pillow.

"I made pizza rolls." Brooke sang.

Immediately Brianna got up and pushed past Brooke. "Why didn't you say you made food? I would have been up an hour ago."

Brooke rolled her eyes and walked into the small kitchen area that connected to their living room. Brianna grabbed half the pizza rolls from the plate onto her own and walked into the living room. Brooke grabbed the other half of the pizza rolls and sat next to Brianna on the couch.

"I can still smell the popcorn Bri." Brooke said after a few minutes of silence.

"Shut up." Brianna grumbled, popping a pizza roll into her mouth.

When they finished their food, they place the plates into the sink, and continued to their rooms to get dressed for the day ahead of them. Both deciding that every day is a lazy day, they were both wearing a hoodie and soft pants.

Brianna grabbed her back full of textbooks and headed out the door. Brooke's class didn't start until around twelve-thirty, so she stayed back to finish the dishes. Brianna climbed down the three flights of stairs to the ground floor. Not caring to look twice before crossing the street, Brianna stepped onto the curb of the opposite side of the street. She looked up at the big buildings in front of her. Something she has to stare at for another two years. The big overhanging sign labelled "Ninjago University" was tarnished and rusted. People were sitting around at the coffee shop or outside, either typing away at their laptop or had their nose buried deep into a book.

Brianna pushed open the doors to the big center building.

"My worst enemy…stairs." Brianna mumbled to herself. Knowing the small elevator would be crowded with other students, she would take the stairs. Stopping at the fourth floor, she walked into her Criminal and Justice class.

Throwing her belonging onto the ground; she sat in the back of the classroom. She was about ten minutes early, but people were already pouring into the class, trying to claim the seats up front.

 _It's going to be a long day._

* * *

Jay watched as the fawn slowly stood to its feet. The injuries were less severe than Jay "exaggerated" it to be. It was nothing more than a few claw mark. Boomer stood and started to bounce around the court yard of the monastery. He knocked over some plant, but Jay ignored it, as long as the fawn was having fun. When Boomer started to nudge at the wooden door to the outside world is when Jay knew that it was time to let Boomer go. Zane had cleared him to be okay.

The blue ninja slowly opened the big wooden door. At first the fawn was hesitating, but then he took off into the forest, calling out for his momma. When Boomer had left his sight, Jay closed the door, smiling.

(Line break)

"That probably the first time I've seen him smile in a while." Zane said, watching as Jay had let the fawn go. "I guess caring for others got his mind off his…problem."

"Yeah…" Nya stood next to Zane. "He seemed really happy to see that Boomer was okay."

"Well a fawn does represent a pure spirit and happiness, so maybe it affected him somehow." Zane smiled.

Nya laughed. "I wish." She walked back inside, leaving Zane and Jay alone.

Zane watched as Jay walked over to the knocked over plant and put it back in it original place.

"Me too." Zane mumbled.

* * *

Cole picked silently at his food. It was probably the first time he wouldn't eat. He was a nervous eater, he ate the pain away; however, today he didn't feel like eating. The pancakes he prepared for his lunch turned cold and soggy from the syrup.

His phone vibrated in his pocket. Cole pulled his phone out of his pants pocket and immediately saw the name "Weirdo" pop up. He smiled, that's the name he saved for Brooke. She had sent him a text, asking how he is doing, but he didn't bother to respond. She knew what was going on with him. The memories of the past few nightmares were still stuck in his head. He shook his head, trying to clear his head.

Nya walked into the kitchen, doing her check on Cole's temperature. She placed her hand against his forehead.

"Jesus, Cole, you're fever still hasn't broke yet. Here let me fix you some tea with honey." Cole could see her mother instincts kick as she got the kettle out of the cabinet and onto the stove.

Brooke had told him that the best thing to do to get some relief is to open up about his nightmares to his friends, the ones he lives with. Cole bit his lip from nervousness.

"Nya can I tell you something?" Cole finally asked as Nya poured the prepared tea into a cup.

"Of course" She responded, drizzling the honey into his cup.

Cole bit his lip again.

 _Now or never._

* * *

 **Thank you so much to everyone who is currently reading this right now. It has been a big struggle to get my anxiety and depression to stop controlling my life and to start writing again. A HUGE thanks to my personal friend: Fandoms of the Opera; for all her support and late night FaceTime sessions. I appreciate every single one of you guys and girls out there who have been supporting this series. Thank you. WPD is signing off for NOT the last time, bye bye.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hello guys and gals, my name is wolfpurpledinosaur, but you probably knew that already. I am back with a new installment of "Shadows Among Us". So as you're probably wondering where this story is heading, as of right now that is to be kept a secret due to the ability of me making it "mysterious." Anyways, enough of my ranting. ON WITH THE CHAPTER!**

* * *

 _The only worse pain than depression, is wondering if it will ever end._

 _-Azgraybebly Joslan_

* * *

Nya crossed her arms and leaned against the counter, waiting for Cole to speak. He fidgeted with his cup of tea as Nya stared him down, like she was searching his soul for some kind of explanation. Cole felt sweat begin to form along his hair line as the steam from his tea hit his face. Nya kept her posture as Cole glanced nervously at her then back to his cup, knowing it must be serious if he couldn't talk about.

The earth ninja was well known for keeping his emotions to himself, Nya knew that. During battle he would wait until it was over to show that he was hurt; however, this wasn't battle, at least she thinks it isn't. With a sigh Nya walked over to stand beside him.

"If there's something bothering you then we should talk about."

Cole jumped slightly as her voice broke the thick silence, her tone serious but calming. He placed the cup of hot tea on the table and stood, grabbing Nya's hand, pulling her out of the kitchen. Nya restricted slightly against his grip but followed anyways. He led her out the backdoor and into the garden area where Sensei Wu grew his flowers. The strong grip on her hand disappeared, Nya looked up at the mountain of a man. Up close she could see dark circles under his eyes, lack of sleep she guessed. He stared at the rows of flowers that twisted and turned in the wind.

"I needed fresh air." Cole whispered, his voice strained even though he barely said anything before.

Cole and Nya sat down on the stone bench, the tension in the air floated around him like mosquitoes. Cole could feel Nya looking at him as he fiddled with his hands again. Nya gently reached over and patted his arm in a comforting way.

"For the past few months…" Cole started, but trailed off. Nya trailed from Cole's arm to his back and slightly patted his back.

"The past few months have been hard on me…I feel so depressed and I don't know why. And lately…I've been having nightmares, terrible ones." Cole finally said.

He looked up at Nya expecting a reaction; however, she kept a straight face, like she was expecting him to say it. Cole could see the gears turning in her complex head, trying to fit pieces together and trying to find words to say. Like him, she could hide her emotions.

"Am I the only person you've told?" She finally asked, her tone not matching her expression as her visage was serious but her voice was soft.

Cole cleared his throat. "Brooke knows."

Nya quirked an eyebrow, a signal for him to continue.

"She told me that it's best if I talk to someone about this because of her being in college, she won't always be there to talk to."

"And you decided to talk to me," it wasn't a question; it was a statement. He could see the gears turning again.

"Yeah…I thought you would be best to talk to. Zane and Kai wouldn't understand; Lloyd is still young and somewhat innocent. And Jay…he has his own anxiety to be concerned about." Cole felt Nya stiffen at the mention of her lover.

An eerie silence fell between them.

"The best thing you can do is to get some help." Nya said finally.

"That's why I'm talking to you, Nya." Cole stated, sarcasm dripping from his lips.

"I mean professional help Cole; a doctor or even a pastor can help you in ways that I can't. The best I can do is offer comfort, but only if you want to, you should talk to a doctor about this."

Cole pondered her words. Brooke had suggested before to seek professional help, but he didn't want anyone to know about his depression so he decided against it. Now as the thought of it played in his head, he considered it deeply.

"Thanks Nya." Cole said, wrapping an arm around his best friend's shoulder.

"Anytime." Nya replied, leaning against him.

The two sat together for a while; both deep in thought. The silence was more comforting than what it was beforehand. Cole removed his arm from around Nya's shoulder and laid his hands in his lap. Nya retracted her head from his shoulder. They both watched as the countless flowers danced in the whispering wind.

As the two young adults sat together a small breeze passed through, causing the flowers to sway more.

"Nya?" Cole dared to break the reassuring silence.

Nya was pulled from her deep thought and looked up at her best friend. "Yes?"

"Can you go with me to the doctor's office tomorrow?"

Nya smiled. "If you want me to then sure."

Cole felt relieved to have someone go with him. If there's somethings he hated in this world, the doctors would be at the top of the list. He didn't like the feeling of them poking him with their tools or needles, the thought sent a shiver throughout his body.

Nya took notice to his uneasiness and laid a hand on his back.

* * *

Jay silently laid on his bed and grabbed his phone from the bedside table. His fingers like lightning as he searched through YouTube to find a video to watch. After five minutes of scrolling he decided on a video by Markiplier, knowing his humor would put him in a good mood.

As the video started he swept a glance out the window; however, the sight outside made him take a second look. Jay never was the one to judge a book by its cover, or a movie by a trailer, but the sight of his best friend's arm around Nya made him boil with anger.

Becoming a famous ninja had their perks, many to be honest. Adoring fans, a close friendship with the other ninja, and without being a ninja he wouldn't have met Nya; however, he wasn't completely in the gutter. He knew about their _fan base_.

The fact of people pairing them with other members of the team. Even the thought of many people _shipping_ the fiery red ninja and green ninja made him cringe. Out of all the _events_ that happen within their fan base, the one Jay despised the most was the pairing of Cole and Nya. Didn't people see she was with him? Due to the wishes of Brooke: the fact of Cole and Brooke's relationship have been kept to a bare minim. Leaving a window for Cole in their base of fans.

Jay turned his attention back to video that was currently playing on his phone. Granted drama was a subject he was good at, but the idea of confronting them right now seemed like he was stalking. Sure he knew that they were just best friends, but that little voice in the back of his head kept telling him something else. He shook his head in an attempt to clear his head of the thought. The bed creaked in protest as Jay leaned back against his pillow, allowing himself to find a position of comfort. As he watched the video, more thoughts entered his head. Not the thoughts about Cole and Nya, but about himself.

Images flashed in front of his eyes, mainly images of him. Him sitting alone and forgotten. Him being casted out; him attacking the ones he loves. The image of claws coming down on Nya's arm filled his head. The anxiety within him seemed to rise every passing second. Jay's eyes started to become heavy, but he refused to sleep, knowing when he closed his eyes that he would see _him._ The part of him that he wished never existed.

 _Darn them Serpentine._ Jay cursed the creatures that put him in this state. The one's who had taken away his sanity; the ones who had taken his leg, making him a crippled peg leg. With a quick glance at his metal leg a single tear flew down his face, too fast for him to stop it.

The silence that surrounded him was maddening. It allowed him to hear that little voice in his head that never seemed to go away. The voice that kept repeating to him that he was worthless, and some days he actually thought the voice was right. Somedays he wanted to cry himself to sleep; somedays he thought the world would be better without him.

Jay placed his cell phone on his bedside table. It was around midday, but Jay was already exhausted. Sensei being away to visit his brother had left the ninja in a state of laziness. None of them waking up early to train or eating right. When Sensei arrived back tomorrow, they were going to be in a world of pain. The thought made Jay groan from disapproval.

Jay grabbed his covers and brought them up to his nose, allowing the warmth to overtake him. He forgot all about what was happening outside as he settled down for a nap. His thoughts shut off as the power of rest tried to overtake him; however, it was short lived. A loud knock came from his door. With a groan he shoved his covers off, and impatiently scurried to answer it. He met the eyes of his dangerous fire brother, Kai.

"Lunch is ready," he said quickly, trying not to make eye contact with Jay.

"Okay. I'll be there in a minute," Jay responded, and watched as Kai trekked back down the hallway.

Jay waited a minute before following, wanting to soak up enough of the quietness as he could before be going to lunch. Naturally he was a loud person, but today he found any bit of noise annoying. Unless it came from his ever so sweet girlfriend, of course. Nevertheless; Jay somehow found himself walked towards the dining room. The aroma of the glorious food prepared by Zane filled Jay's nose, making his mouth water.

Upon entering Jay found the source of the astonishing smell. Zane had prepared a homemade pizza, layered with cheese and pepperoni. Many people would be like: " _It's just pizza,"_ however; this masterpiece was made by the fantastic Zane, making it ten times better.

Jay settled into his seat next to Lloyd, who was waiting for everyone else to be present before allowing his hunger to overtake him. Seconds passed before Cole and Nya entered, followed by Kai. Cole sat beside Kai and Zane, whilst Nya plopped down next to Jay. Since everyone was present they all grabbed a slice of the masterpiece, except Cole who claimed to have eaten earlier.

Excusing himself from the table, Cole got up and headed back outside. Jay watched him tread away, observing the way his shoulders were drooping forward and his head down.

Jay felt Nya grab his hand from under the table and shook her head. Telling him not to bother with it and let him go. The only response he gave her was a small nod.

The rest of lunch went without fault. Everyone, even Jay, joked around with each other. Each of them bantering about the old days with Serpentine and the skeleton army. The whole time Nya kept Jay's hand clasped in her own, everyone in a while he would feel her run her thumb over his knuckles. Something he usually did to her. He guessed he was rubbing off on her.

"Oh my gosh, and remember when Jay turned in a snake?" Kai busted out laughing, clutching his stomach. Zane and Lloyd joining his laughing revelry.

Nya looked up from her food, and muffled a giggle. "That was funny, but remember when Kai believed he was the Green Ninja?"

Kai's visage turned red like his gi, which caused Zane and Lloyd to laugh harder. Jay found himself laughing at his red brother's awkwardness.

"Not as funny when Zane turned his funny switch on." Jay smirked, another round of laughs trailed.

"Ah good times." Lloyd smiled, taking another bite of his slice of pizza.

* * *

Cole solemnly listened to the laughs that echoed from inside. He just got off the phone with his regular doctor and they agreed to see Cole tomorrow after their hardcore training with Sensei Wu.

Here he was sitting back on the bench hat not even an hour ago, he was having a heart to heart moment with Nya. For once he felt as if someone actually understood and listened to what he was dealing with, and it felt good to put his sentiments out in the open.

The door leading inside creaked open.

"Hey," an energetic voice called out to him.

Cole turned to face his blue clad brother. It took Cole a second to intake his changing features he didn't notice earlier. Jay had gotten a bit buffer over the years. His muscles could easily be seen through his blue muscle tight shirt. Like himself, Jay had dark circles under his eye, making him seem wiser than he really was.

"We're all making ice cream sundaes. They…we wanted to know if you would like to join us?" Jay nervously scratched the back of his neck.

The idea of ice cream lifted his spirits. "Yeah sure."

Cole stood to his full height and followed Jay back to the kitchen where Zane had set up all the supplies for them.

Immediately both of the boys grabbed a bowl from the countertop and scooped their self a load of ice cream. Cole reached and dumped nearly half a container of sprinkles before moving to receive some whipped cream.

"Hey safe some for me!" Jay grabbed the nearly empty container of sprinkles and dumped the rest in his own bowl.

Cole laughed.

Jay proceeded with the whipped cream and pilled it on his ice cream.

"We're going to be so boned tomorrow during training." Cole said in between scoops of ice cream that he shoved down with throat.

"Yep!" Jay agreed and laughed.

Soon they both burst into fits of giggles and hoots.

"So boned!" Jay scooped more ice cream onto his spoon.

Cole walked over to the radio and fiddled with the buttons until a song he liked started playing: 'The Sailor Song' by Toy Box. The song was playing loud and could probably be heard from across the monastery.

Soon Jay and Cole were both singing along to the melody.

Zane, Lloyd, Nya, and Kai walked into kitchen, trying to find the source of the loud music.

Zane frowned. "This isn't the 80s' station."

Nya face palmed. "This is why they can't have sugar."

Lloyd and Kai reluctantly started to sing with them. Their voices not in tune with each other, causing whoever was around them to receive a headache. Zane pressed a button on a radio, switching the station. The remaining boys frowned at the nindriod for killing their 'vibes'.

"Fun sucker." Kai stuck out his tongue.

Jay turned the station and the music of 'Lollipop by MIKA' filled the atmosphere. The guys, even Zane, started singing along with the song. Their voices out of tune again.

Cole grabbed the tub of ice cream and everyone started eating out of it instead of their bowls.

Nya face palmed once again. "This song is so cancerous." She mumbled and walked out. "Self-reminder. Never give the boys sugar again."

Nya cringed at the sound of the boy's voices that trekked throughout the building.

* * *

Lloyd groaned in protest as Sensei Wu banged on a gong. After singing the same song for hours on end, the boys somehow found their way to their room and experience a crash. He knew that he shouldn't have had so much ice cream and candy. Lloyd could feel the diabetes crawling its way out of the pit of the underworld. His stomach griped and screeched from all the sugar it took. The others, except Zane, seemed to be in the same shape as he was.

"Ah! What is that God forsaken noise?" Kai grumbled, pulling his pillow over his face.

"Rise and shine pupils." Sensei Wu banged the gong again.

"Five more minutes." Jay yawned, burying himself in his covers.

"Laziness is nothing more than the habit of resting before you get tired." Sensei Wu used his staff to smack Jay upside the head.

"Uncle…just give me a minute to…recover." Lloyd plopped back against his pillows, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes.

Sensei Wu ignored his nephew's request and walked towards the door. "I expect you all bright eyed and bushy tailed in three minutes."

Everyone groaned in objection, but halfheartedly got up.

"I guess you can say candy really did rot our soul." Jay joked, but clutched his stomach as he was going to throw up.

* * *

"I can see in my absence that you all have gone…" Sensei used his staff to poke Kai in the stomach. "Fluffy."

Kai patted his stomach. The sugar from the previous night had unexpectedly hit him hard. Usually he could take the crash from sugar, but due to his inactivity he has gone like Sensei said: fluffy.

"I knew I should of left Nya in charge." Wu mumbled to himself.

Wu cleared his throat. "Fifty push-ups!" He yelled as if he was a drill sergeant.

The guys groaned and got in a push-up position.

"Down." Sensei yelled.

"One." The guys said.

"Up." The boy returned to the push-up position.

"Down."

"Two." The boy responded, counting down the push-up they had to do.

After their fifty push-ups were done, they moved onto sit ups and running a three-mile hike through the forest.

By midday, the boys were exhausted and drenched in sweat. Zane left to prepare lunch for them, and Cole left for his doctor's appointment with Nya. Leaving Jay, Kai, and Lloyd to continue training.

Jay watched contemptuously as Nya left with Cole.

* * *

"Why am I so nervous? I'm never nervous." Cole squirmed in the chair in the waiting room.

Nya sat beside him, reading a six-month old magazine. "Everyone gets nervous sometimes at the doctor's."

"Yeah, but I never get nervous."

Nya rolled her eyes at his pride. "There's a first for everything."

"Henseworth." The nurse called from the door.

The sound of his last name being called sent a quiver down his spine. Cole and Nya got up and followed the nurse toward the back. She guided them to a room at the end of the hall.

"The doctor will be here shortly."

The door closed behind the nurse.

"I changed my mind, let's leave." Cole stood to his full height, but Nya grabbed his arm, pulling him back into his chair.

"You're not going anywhere." Nya commanded. "I'm actually proud that you made it this far, and you're not going to bail at the last possible second."

Cole sat morosely in utter defeat. His head rested contently on his perched hand, a scowl covering his visage. He grumbled a few curse words and picked up one of the convenient magazines that were placed in a tray next to his chair. The first one he picked up was titled "Ninjago's New Flash". On the front was a picture of some pop star, the name didn't cross his mind at the moment.

The magazines seemed to be a taunt to Cole. Like they were saying: _Hey buddy. Everything will be okay. Here read this useless trash that no one cares about._

As seconds turned into minutes, frustration and tension were building up in him. By the look on Nya's face, she was pissed as well for the wait. They both were vigorous and never wanted to sit still.

"Do you have any crayons?" Cole asked Nya innocently, holding a coloring book with a picture of The Powerpuff Girls on the front.

Nya adverted her gaze to the earth ninja.

"Yes Cole, I just keep crayons with me everywhere I go. Just to meet the need of your…" She looked at the cover of the coloring book, "…crisis."

Cole rolled his eyes at her sarcasm. "It was just a question."

"I'm sorry. It's my first defense against inanity."

"You know I don't like big words, Nya!"

"Inanity isn't a big word."

Before the conversation could escalate, a knock was heard at the door. They didn't need to respond before the door opened. Cole's doctor wasn't anything special to be remember on a normal day. He had sunken grey eyes, slick black hair, and wrinkles to prove his age. To put the cherry on top of the pie, he had a lab coat on with a stethoscope laced around his neck.

He remained silent and jotted down some notes. The doctor placed his clipboard on the desk and turned his attention to the pair.

"Nice for you visit us today Cole," The older man said, "What seems to be the problem?"

Cole felt a perturbed feeling in his stomach. His doctor waited patiently for Cole to speak. Knowing the only thing in between him and the door was the doctor, and the window escape was a two-hundred-foot drop, there was no avoidance. With a sigh, Cole started to explain to his doctor about his depression.

* * *

The punch bag swung back in protest to the fire ninjas fist. Somehow it always came back for more, and Kai would punch it another time. Training that day was longer and tougher than before. In the words of Sensei: _Your laziness will not be tolerated._

The only relief they got is when Zane called them in for lunch. Like any other day, Zane prepared sandwiches, a bowl of sliced fruit, and a refreshing pitcher of cold lemonade. Immediately they walked in and planted their selves in a chair. The calming sound of the 80s' station playing on the radio danced around the room, soothing the nerves they were working earlier.

Wu sat at the head of the table, sipping his tea. Kai sat at the other end, chewing on his sandwich and popping grapes in his mouth. Lloyd was placed next to his uncle, whilst Zane sat to his right. Jay sat on the other side of the table, the two empty seats next to him boiled his anger. It was clear that the others could read his emotions as they gave him confusing looks. Sensei was the first to break the silence.

"I was very…impressed with your work today ninja." Wu stroked his beard slowly, as if he was deep in thought. "Sadly your training continues after this get together."

"Define training." Kai snorted, popping another grape in his mouth, placing his feet up on the table.

Sensei let out a single scoff. "Your attitude will not help your situation. I think another three-mile run will suffice."

The remaining ninja groaned and shot Kai a dirty look, Kai ignored their disproving expressions. Sensei stood and grabbed his tea pot from the table.

"I will see you ninja when you have finished your meal."

On Sensei's way out he used his staff to smack Kai's feet off the table.

"Way to go Fire Breath." Jay groaned after Sensei left. "Thanks to you we have to suffer with another three-mile hike."

"You think I'm jumping for joy Motor Mouth?" Kai retorted. "I wish I could skip leg day as much as you wish you could."

"Leg day?" Zane questioned. "Is this some kind of term for a workout routine?"

"Guys! Not matter how much we gripe and complain, Sensei is right." Lloyd stood, catching the attention of the others. "Look at us."

Lloyd poke Zane, causing a laugh to escape the nindriod. "We have gone soft. What's going to happen when someone attacks Ninjago, and we're not prepared?"

Jay shrugged him off. "Please Lloyd, it's been two years since the last Serpentine War. If anything was gonna attack Ninjago, they would have done it by now."

"I mean it only took the Overlord a few months before he got antsy and attacking again." Kai said, obviously uninterested in continuing the conversation.

A glances were shot Zane's way at the mention of the second Overlord attack.

"A lot has happened." Zane said, noticing their sideway glimpses. "The past two years have been rough, but we got through it as a team. Lloyd is right. We have gone soft. If you want to wait around for a new enemy to hit then be my guest, I'm going to train."

A quick as lightning Zane fled the dining area. The humans fell silent at Zane's slight outburst.

The song 'Don't Stop Believing' started playing on the radio. Kai rolled his eyes.

"Come on." Kai grumbled, walking out the door, the other two ninjas in tow.

* * *

"…and I feel like…like I need to protect someone when there's no one to protect. It makes me…depressed that I can't help when I feel like someone needs my help." Cole finished, not once mentioning the nightmares.

The doctor jotted down some more notes on his clipboard. "I see…from my understanding you have a fear of failing, not failing like a test, but failing at protecting the ones you love. Correct?"

Cole nodded.

"The best thing I could do is prescribe you some antidepressants." The doctor said calmly.

"Antidepressants?" Cole felt his rage rise.

"Yes. They help people who are depressed- "

"I know what they do!"

"Cole calm down." Nya said soothingly.

"No! Not when they're telling me that the only thing that can help me is some kind of… _drugs._ "

Cole stood and zoomed for the door. Nya made no attempt to run after him, she grimly laid her head in her hands.

"I want to thank you." The doctor said.

Nya looked up. "For what?"

"Depression is hard, especially on a _young couple_. Thank you for bringing him today, I think this was an eye opener for him."

A blush formed across her face for some reason. "We're not dating, and never going to." She laughed.

The doctor quickly countered his mistake. "My apologies. I couldn't help but assume."

She shrugged him off. "It's fine."

The doctor grabbed a sheet of paper and wrote something inaudible from a distance, but she recognized the paper he was writing on. A prescription. He tore the paper from the rest and handed it to Nya.

"In case he changes his mind, this is what I prescribe."

Nya stood and headed for the door. She found Cole sitting outside by her car, and made no effort to start a conversation.

* * *

Zane slammed the door to the shared room of the ninja. As promised, training today was brutal and fierce. He headed for the adjoining bathroom and quickly stripped himself of his sweaty gi and took a brisk shower. The other were relaxing in the living room, where the AC seemed to be working the most today.

After his comforting shower he dressed in his sweat pants and light t-shirt. With a sigh, Zane flopped back on his bed. The thin blanket holding no support to his back. Zane glance over to his bed side table and opened the drawer, removing the hard drive from it place of rest and placed it in the slot at the back of his head.

 _Zane?_ A sweet voice spoke to him.

* * *

 **And done! For now, that is. This chapter was purely based on restless nights and sarcasm. Thank you to everyone who has been reviewing and reading this series since the first story: You're a Good Guy?**

 **These last few months have depressing for myself, but lately I've gotten an eye-opener myself and got a lot of inspiration and ideas.**

 **I hope you all enjoyed the chapter, and if you can, leave a review telling me what you think or telling me of an error I missed. Thank you all! Love you guys! WPD signing out for not the last time, BYE BYE!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Welcome back to the sixth installment of: Shadows Among Us. My name is wolfpurpledinosaur, but you probably knew that already. Thanks to everyone who reviewed and read the last chapter. Now let's stop ranting and ON WITH THE CHAPTER!**

* * *

" _You know you're in love when you can't fall asleep because reality is finally better than your dreams."_

― _Dr. Seuss_

* * *

 _Zane?_ A sweet voice spoke to him.

Zane smiled. "Hello Pixal."

 _You removed my hard drive earlier. Why?_

"I thought it was best, I knew I was going to be under a lot of stress from training. I didn't want to put you through that today."

The image of his beloved Pixal casted in front of his eyes, right where she belonged. He saw her flustered face, and she was looking down at her feet. Zane smiled again at the sight.

 _You're too kind._ She spoke softly, placing a hand over her flustered face. Zane chuckled.

"So how has your day been?" Zane leaned back against his lumpy pillow, his arm slung behind his head serving as a better pillow than his actual one.

 _Dark._

Pixal's monotone voice sent a shiver down Zane's spine, and he almost forgot that she was just a hard drive in his head. He knew that she sensed his uneasiness.

"Sorry," Zane chuckled despite himself.

Pixal giggled along. _It's okay. I'm just messing with you._

Zane sat back against his pillow and grabbed the book on his side table. Deciding that reading will settle his mind from the stress of today. As he flipped page to page, Pixal's presence brought him comfort in ways he couldn't imagine.

 _Of Mice and Men? An interesting choice._

"Yes indeed. A very deep-rooted story, but with more blaspheming than my usually tailored language." Zane replied, flipping the page to resume his reading.

 _Definitely. A very sad ending also._

"Shhh. No spoilers, love." Zane said, the last word slipping past his lips before he could process it. When it did process, he was midway through the next page, and a blush crept up his face and neck.

Pixal didn't seem to notice his slip as she was deep in thought, his to be more specific.

 _What are you thinking about?_ Pixal asked, noticing his tension.

Zane didn't know if this was a trick question or just a legit blunt query. She already coordinates his thoughts and helps him in time of peril. If anything, she already _knew_ the answer to her question. He didn't want to say that he was thinking of her, but he couldn't lie knowing she was in his head, and could detect his malarkey.

"Well…" He took a chance. "I'm thinking of you…"

Her visage that was showed before his eyes showed confusion.

 _Why?_ She asked, bluntly.

Zane nearly choked at her frankness. Artificial sweat rolled down his neck. A feeling he never experienced before.

 _Zane. Your anxiety levels are rising, but there is no apparent threat. What is troubling you?_

For once Zane didn't have an answer. No logical comeback or witty puns to cover up.

"Nothing. Just a little stressed from today."

Busted.

She stared into oblivion, trying to figure out the logic behind his answer. He was caught in a lie and for some reason he accepted it. If she did catch his lie, then she circumvented it completely. The rest of the time until the rest of the ninja came back, she was silent. A kind of silent that was striking Zane in his power source every passing second.

 _What the..._ Zane almost completed his thought as he read his book.

 _Profanity._ The small voice of Pixal spoke morosely.

 _I wasn't going to use that word Pixie._

Zane smiled knowing she hated that nickname. It reminded her of some fairly tale crap that she hates deeply.

The weird thing about having a suppose girlfriend in your head was you could feel her searching your thoughts. Even if he _thinks_ the wrong thought she would know and put him back in line. Zane shuddered as Pixal scanned his memory for a previous read book, to read for herself.

 _Do I make you uncomfortable?_

Zane smiled, not losing focus on his page. "Not at all."

When Pixal retrieved what, she was searching for, Zane felt his mind calm, like she was a mini storm inside his head. He could feel her relaxing into the silence and into a cubby of comfort. In his tunnel vision, he saw her reading a book and sitting on what appeared to be a couch, her legs were crossed apple sauce style. The wonders of Zane's brain were indefinite including a personal library and a mini fridge. Zane smiled before turning back to his book.

The others came back minutes later. A mixture of sweat and water lined their foreheads and their shirts soaked from the rain that started moments ago. Lloyd and Kai gave him a silent greeting whilst Jay plopped down on his bed next to the window, sleep coming faster than his given power. Zane ignored his action and greeted his remaining brothers.

"I call shower first!" Lloyd pushed past Kai playfully, and jogged to the adjacent bathroom.

"Hey! Nah me first!" Kai jogged after the green ninja and they started pushing each out of the way, seeing who gets there first.

Jay groaned. "Get a room."

Lloyd and Kai stopped and looked at each before backing away from each other.

"You can have the shower first, Lloyd." Kai backed away from the younger male and delivered a slap to the back of Jay's head.

Jay flinched slightly and growled at the fire ninja.

"Maybe it's best not the provoke him right now." Zane responded, not looking up from his book.

Kai nodded. He knew full and well that Zane still harbored slight hatred toward him. Since he was the one who made Jay have his latest anxiety attack.

Kai laid on his bed and stared up at the ceiling. The only sound was the sound of the shower running and Jay's soft snores.

Kai knew Zane was ignoring him. He made it really obvious that he was still crossed with the fire ninja. Not directly looking at him, and not talking to him were only a few of things Zane did. Zane did talk to Pixal. Kai could only hear one side of the conversation, but he could tell Pixal was asking what's going between them.

Zane. The protector. When it came to the one's he cares for the most, you better hope you're not in his way, because he loves hard.

* * *

Nya returned to her car to find a certain earth ninja. His arms crossed over his chest, which was puffed out, exposing the muscles under his shirt. Sweat lined his forehead, damping his hair that swept over his eyes slightly. Being the hardheaded person he was, he didn't grab the keys from her, leaving himself in the blazing heat.

"I know what you're going to say…" Cole started, after they left the parking lot. "I'm stupid and should suck it up with the antidepressants."

To be honest, Nya wasn't going to say anything. Maybe suggest going by Burger King to pick up a Whopper, but that was basically it. She too wasn't in the mood to talk either. The last hour has been stressful, especially with the nonstop thought of Jay on her mind. Due to past events, he has been emotionally unstable. Some days Nya doesn't want to leave him from the constant fear he might try to hurt himself again.

Nya sighed. "I was going to suggest we get food."

She knew that she found his weakness. He slowly nodded and slouched in his seat.

The silence that surrounded the two was thick as Cole's fabulous locks. Cole fiddled aimlessly through his Twitter account, most likely looking at his fan page. Nya gripped the steering wheel, her knuckles turning white. The stress from today building up, ready to fall and crush whoever is in its path.

"Should I though?" the earth ninja broke through the silence.

Nya slightly jumped at his voice. "What?" she questioned.

"Should I go through with the antidepressants?"

Nya shrugged. "That's completely up to you. How old are you now? Twenty-three? You're a grown man, Cole. If you want to take the medication, then you take them. Just hear me out…"

Nya parked the car in the parking lot of a small restaurant. "Do what you think is best for you. Not what Brooke or anyone else wants."

Nya turned the car off and walked towards the restaurant. Cole followed shortly. Upon arrival, you would think you just stepped into a small diner. The lights were slightly dimmed and the walls were painted a crisp green. Immediately Nya and Cole were seated and handed a menu. The waiter took their drink order and sped off.

"What is this place?" Cole questioned.

"It's called Fawn's Peak. Jay took me here a while back, it's good quality food for cheap prices." Nya said, not looking up from her menu.

"Cheap? Yeah that sounds like Jay." Cole laughed. He could have sworn that the edge of Nya's lips curved upward into a smile, but it quickly disappeared.

Cole quickly scanned the page. Nya wasn't lying about the cheap pricing. Their waiter came from the kitchen carrying their drinks. He placed hem gingerly in front of them and pulled a pad of paper from his apron.

"Can I take your order ma'am?" The waiter looked at Nya.

"The grilled chicken salad, please, with ranch." Nya handed the man her menu.

The waiter looked expectantly to Cole. "Um, the cheeseburger all the way."

The waiter retrieved Cole's menu and headed back to the kitchen.

Once again, silence followed. Cole leaned back in his chair and studied his surroundings. The small restaurant had a more southern charm then what you normally see in Ninjago City. The walls were decorated with random knickknacks, and the aroma of cinnamon filled the air. The atmosphere was almost sickening to someone of high class, but cozy to the one who like the simple life.

Cole's wandering eyes found the samurai/ninja in front of him. She had her hands folded elegantly in her lap and she stared off into space. Mostly like figuring out an escape route in case an enemy decided to attack. They never do. Either that, or she was thinking about her lover back home.

"So…how are you and Jay?"

Nya stiffened slightly. "Didn't you ask that yesterday?" she replied, sass levels rising, her eyes finding his.

The heat flowed to Cole's face, red slightly showing through his naturally tan skin. "Yeah, but, you never gave me a direct answer."

Nya stayed silent, using her straw to stir her drink, and stared at the table. Cole waited patiently for her to speak, but she never did.

Cole took the sign. "If you don't want to talk about it, then we don't have to."

"No. I mean-we're good. Things have been really stressful lately…but we're good." Nya rubbed the back of her neck awkwardly.

"He really does love you." Cole said after a few seconds of silence.

Nya nodded. "Yeah, and I love him."

Nya felt weird talking to Cole about her love life. Whether they like it or not-Cole was her perfect match. No matter what the system said, she still chose Jay. As mushy as it sounds: she only let him into her heart, and it will forever be closed off for him.

Memories of last year flashed before her eyes. The wedding, the wish, her and Jay finding each other again. Sometime she would question telling the others about sky pirates, but Jay would flirtatiously grin and say, " _maybe it should be our little secret."_

She hated being away from Jay. The thought of her not being there when he needs her the most makes her heart twist and ache. He did so much to prove himself when he didn't have to. Nya usually hated physical contact in public, but when he needed it, he got it.

"What about you, mister?"

Cole looked up from his phone. "What about me?"

"How's your relationship been lately?"

A small blush creeped its way from the back of his neck to his face. Nya slightly giggled at his awkwardness.

"Uh. We're good too. I mean nothing serious like you guys have, but…"

"But what?" Nya pressed on.

"…she's just been there a lot, and…I don't know what I would do without her."

Nya smiled. "Ah, is our little earth ninja in love?"

Cole blushed at her lighthearted joke. "Maybe…"

* * *

Life is pain.

 _That's an understatement._

The professor that stood at the front of the large classroom had his book in hand and leaned over the podium. His glasses slid down his nose slightly and he looked like he was completely wasted last night. The circles under his eyes showed his age better than his nonexistent wrinkles.

Like any cheesy story; he had elbow patches on his jacket. The only thing that didn't scream 'nerd' was the clearly visible back tattoo that looped up to his neck, showing random black lines.

Brooke leaned back in her chair, still recovering from her three-hour sleep last night.

 _I could drop out and work at McDonalds._ Her thoughts chimed. _But I have standards so…_

"I hope you all have been studying…" The professor pulled a stack of papers off his desk "Because we have a test today, and by we, I mean you!" He laughed at his own joke.

A few sardonic eye rolls were earned from his puns as students fumbled to retrieve a writing utensil from their bags. Brooke impatiently tapped her pencil eraser on the desk as the exam was handed out.

She never said that her class: Introduction to Novel Writing; was easy. It wasn't a nice stroll through the park with little dandelions dancing in the wind and eating ice cream on the harbor kind of bullcrap. It was the buckle up to play an action game whilst listening to Seven Nation Army just to sound cool kind of class.

It wasn't easy, but not difficult to understand.

Doesn't make any sense, does it?

"Make this count. This exam is twenty percent of your grade." The professor chimed, kicking his feet up on his desk with the book 'Dealing with Your Stress' in hand.

 _I'm sure they're still hiring at the strip club._

The test itself was easy. Mostly just correcting grammar and writing short paragraphs to show what the students know. Like any kindergarten class, the last question asks what they thought of the coarse.

Brooke tapped her pencil on the desk before writing: "Crippling depression"

* * *

Lloyd vacated the bathroom with a towel wrapped around his shoulders, his blondish locks dripping water onto his clean white shirt. Kai zipped past the green ninja to claim the bathroom. The green ninja laid against his rock-hard pillows, and grabbed his phone from his bedside dresser.

His muscles ached and screamed with every movement. _Maybe eating all those sweets wasn't a good idea._

Zane grumbled before placing the book he was reading on his dresser. "Well that was dramatic."

Lloyd guessed he was talking to Pixal. He always does. Sometimes he wishes he could hear the other half of the conversation, or can at least talk to Pixal; however, she is _limited_ to the folds of Zane's mind and body.

"I'm not being a baby. The ending was just unexpected!" Zane protested.

A complete stranger would think he had a few loose screws.

"Yeah okay, sure, but still there could have been millions of other things done to resolve it."

Lloyd quirked an eyebrow at the nindroid. _Who would have thought a book could make someone so emotional?_

His mind wandered to his bespectacled blonde-haired girlfriend. _Right._

Jay let out another groan, the nindroid being louder than anticipated. The brown-haired mechanic rolled over in his bed and stared at the nindoid. Even from across the room, Lloyd could see the dark line under his eyes and the way his eyelids drooped.

The blue ninja caught Lloyd's eyes with his own. Lloyd sent him a gentle wave before turning back to his phone, not wanting to be awkward.

 _Maybe I should talk to him…_

Lloyd looked up to see the welder of lightning plop back on his bed and continued snoring.

 _Or not._

* * *

 **Honestly. I felt like the last part was complete trash. I just wanted to throw in a Lloyd moment because he's been in the shadows lately because I've been mainly focusing on Jay and Cole.**

 **Before I go I like everyone to know that this story will end at least at chapter eight. I did have ideas, but I threw them away. This is mainly just an everyday life story with every day struggles that most of us go through…minus the whole turning into a werewolf thing. I love each and every one of you guys and couldn't image me being here today without you guys.**

 **I know my upload schedule is complete whack, but I'm currently writing a one shot to make up for it.**

 **WPD is signing off for not the last time! Bye-bye!**


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